October 20, 2010

Name:

Jasper

Age:

One year old

Gender:

Male

Kind:

Suri Alpaca

Home:

Wildomar, California, USA

Jasper
is a suri alpaca, and he's a male. What makes Jasper so special is that
he is loved by an amazing ten-year-old girl who recognized his unique
personality and has trained him to be a registered therapy alpaca. Jasper
became the Delta Societies first registered alpaca animal assisted Pet Partner
on July 17, 2010. His handler is also the youngest registered handler
for the Inland Empire Pet Partners. They spend their free time volunteering
their services. They visit senior centers, hospice patients, preschoolers at
the library, schools, and various charity events. His soft fur and unexpected
appearance bring delight and win friends wherever they go. Jasper and his
little girl love making people smile. Jasper even has his own page on
Facebook, you can follow "Jasper Alpaca."
He is an amazing alpaca!

He is very special indeed. A bit more about alpacas in general. Alpacas come
in two varieties, suri and huacaya. Suri's like Jasper have fiber (hair) that
grow in dreadlocks from the body. Huacaya's have fluffy fiber. Both are very
soft and luxurious. We shear our Alpacas every May and enjoy using the fiber
for ourselves and to sell in our alpaca store. Alpacas are gentle, easy
keepers. They do not require a lot of land and they eat very little if you
compare to a horse. They make a very low humming sound and do not challenge
fences. Alpaca manure is very low odor and great for your garden.

Jasper lives on a small ranch (Bootleg Alpacas) with seven other alpacas. They
spend the day grazing in a small field and dancing at sun down. We love
sharing our lives with these wonderful creatures. Jasper makes it more special
because he is able to pleasantly visit others. This past Friday we took him
for a visit to the Senior Center. He had the pleasure of meeting a
100-year-old woman whose smile could not be missed when she spotted Jasper
entering her room.